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Committee also supports adding grandfather clause to the AD legislation

July 17, 2014 11:42amRachel Stark

Proposed legislation that would directly impact 12 percent or fewer Division II members has become one of the most widely discussed proposals since it was first recommended by the Membership Committee last November.

Those discussions took a new turn last week when the proposal, which would require all Division II schools to employ a full-time athletics director and a full-time compliance administrator with no coaching duties, returned to the committee where it originated and, after further review, advanced with significant revisions.

The Membership Committee recommended splitting the legislation into two separate proposals during its July 7-8 meeting in Indianapolis, allowing members to vote separately on the requirements for a full-time athletics director and compliance administrator.

The committee also supported adding a grandfather clause to the athletics director proposal to assist schools that currently employ an athletics director with coaching responsibilities. Committee members did not support including a grandfather clause for compliance administrators due to the greater risk for conflicts of interest with the dual roles.

In addition, the committee recommended changing the effective date for both proposals to Aug. 1, 2015. Any school that has not complied after that date would be put on probation for a year.

The Management Council and Presidents Council will review the revised recommendations to the proposal at their upcoming summer meetings. If approved, the Division II membership will vote on each of the issues at the Convention in January.

Schools entering the Division II membership process are already required to employ a full-time athletics director and compliance administrator with no coaching duties. And a 2013 Division II Membership Census revealed that only 12 percent or fewer Division II schools currently have an athletics director and/or compliance administrator who doubles as a coach.

The proposed legislation is designed to create consistency across the membership.

Regional Compliance Seminar to Continue

Also at the meeting, the Membership Committee endorsed continuing the Regional Compliance Seminar pilot program during the 2014-15 academic year. The program provides training for athletics administrators, coaches and other staff members in financial aid, registrar and admissions offices. In its first year, the east regional seminar was held May 14-15 in Trumbull, Connecticut, and covered legislative topics, NCAA technology, eligibility, recruiting, transfers, progress-towards-degree requirements and financial aid.

Committee Chairs Elected

The committee elected Deborah Chin, director of athletics at New Haven, as its chair, and Dustin Smith, director of athletics at Arkansas-Fort Smith, as its vice chair. The new chairs will begin their duties Sept. 1.

Highlights

What happened: The Division II Membership Committee recommended splitting a proposal to require schools to employ a full-time athletics director and a full-time compliance administrator with no coaching duties into two separate proposals. The committee also recommended adding a grandfathering clause to the athletics director piece and changing the effective date for both proposals to Aug. 1, 2015.

What’s next: The Management Council will review the revised recommendations to the proposal at its meeting next week. If approved by both the Management Council and Presidents Council, which meets Aug. 6-7, the Division II membership will vote on the issues at the Convention in January.

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